Scott Fennessy 1905 replay: season update as of August 1

by Scott Fennessy

It is now August first and we are just past the half-way point in the season. It has been an interesting ride for some teams. So here is a breakdown of how things are shaping up on my 1905 replay.

White Sox

Overall the Sox are well on their way to the post season. They have almost no offensive weapons whatsoever, but the pitching has been phenomenal to say the least. It seems like every time someone gets within striking distance injuries or a tail off occur. They turned the first triple play in team history in July. James Callahan and John Donahue have set the table at the top with decent seasons, but the only player with more than 1 home run is George Rhoe who is on the DL yet again and has missed almost the entire season. Pitching on the other hand is their strength. The team with the best overall staff is proving it. Doc White is 16-9 with a 1.64 ERA, Frank Smith is 16-7, and none of the three starters has a WHIP above 0.80. To prove the depth Nick Altrock came in for a few starts when Frank Owen showed signs of slowing down and promptly threw back to back shutouts and a combined 6 hits. They will most likely win the pennant, but they still leave much to be desired with the bats.

A’s

The one team that can match the White Sox pitching wise, and maybe even better. They have been hurt pretty badly by a combination of injuries and underperforming hitters. They have finally gotten their players off the DL, and Jasper Davis and Socks Seybold are FINALLY starting to come around, but they have some big holes in the lineup right now. Andy Coakley (16-8 5.81 K per 9) and Rube Waddell (137 K in 258 innings) have absolutely dominated hitters this year and are battling for the AL Cy Young award (Yes that’s what I call it, even though he is still active) The hitting will have to step things up a bit more if they plan to dethrone the White Sox

Indians

They have really improved this month as Harry Bay is stealing lots of bases and Napoleon Lajoie, Elmer Flick and Harry Bemis have started to hit. Bear in mind that hitting is extremely suppressed in the AL this year so even ordinary numbers are considered good. They have massive holes in the bottom third of the order and the 7-9 spots are basically free outs for the opposition. Thankfully Earl Moore and Addie Joss are massive workhorses who can and have carried the load this month.

Tigers

Have had a real roller coaster ride this month. Briefly moved into third and then fell off the pace. Sam Crawford really has had a great month and Now leads the league with a .297 avg. That’s right the AL may not have a .300 hitter this season. In fact they may not even have 2 hitters get over .280, that’s how tough AL pitching has been, but Sam also leads the league in OBP, Slugging, OPS and hits. The trio of Ed Killian, Bill Donovan and George Mullin have been very devastating at times, but the lack of hitting has really hurt. Another team where the bottom of the order is basically 3 free outs. Rookie center fielder Ty Cobb lost his job after underperforming badly and Matt McIntyre has done a tolerable job in his stead. I still look forward to his next card though.

Red Sox

Another team that got to second place and once they faced the White Sox fell back to mid pack status. Jimmy Collins is hitting .279 and is the only other hitter in the AL near .280. Cy Young gets all the press but Jesse Tannehill (King of the 1 hitter) and George Winter are very capable starters too. Should be doing better but again many easy outs in this lineup. Buck Freeman has been a disappointment so far.

Yankees

Willie Keeler is hitting just .261 with 1 homer and only 14 extra base hits, but is actually one of the better hitters in the light hitting AL. Dave Fultz has been getting on and stealing more lately, but a rash of injuries has really hurt them this month. Jack Chesbro is 12-12 but has had strange bouts of wildness that have hurt his efforts.

Browns

Finally having left the cellar and signs of life. George Stone leads the league with 7 homers and while he, Emil Frisk and Bobby Wallace have struggled badly at times they have all cleared the Mendoza line and Stone is flirting with the mid .200’s Harry Howell is one of the top fireballers and is in the top 5 in strikeouts. Willie Sudhoff was 0-14 as of May first and is now 6-16 and one of the main reasons for their improvement.

Senators

Well it’s easy to rip them, and I was very harsh on Garland Stahl as he is the “Star” of the team with a .247 average, but after looking at the numbers is actually one of the best hitters in the league this year. John Anderson is 10th in steals but is drastically underperforming. They went through a period a few weeks ago where every single reserve was either on the DL or lineup and pitcher Fred Falkenberg had to play third base for 2 games until someone else came back. They still have no reserves for another week so things are looking grim. Tom Hughes struck out 5 straight hitters early in the month for a new record (since tied the other day) but pitching is really not happening in Capitol City.

Giants

Well they continue to dominate like nobody’s business, but they FINALLY have come down to earth and have two teams in the rear view mirror closing ground. They are overall the best in pretty much any aspect of the game. They run, hit, hit for power, pitch well, and pitch for power. The scary part is that Art Devlin and Sam Mertes have only now just cleared the .220 mark at the 1-2 spots in the order. Mike Donlin is going to win the batting title in a walk, and any of the players in the lineup could end up leading the league in RBI or stolen bases. Christy Mathewson and Joe McGinnity are proving why they may have been the best 1-2 combo in NL history. In addition to being outstanding pitchers they are hitting well too. They probably will face the White Sox in October, but the Cubs and Pirates still may have a say in that.

Cubs

Despite having a ton of injuries, especially to the starting rotation they have hung in there and now that players are starting to return they have begun a new push. They are holding out as Big Ed will return in 4 days Frank Chance is having a better year than I originally thought and is in the top 10 in almost every category. Jake Weimer is arguably among the best pitcher in baseball, despite having missed some starts with an injury. Johnny Evers is riding a 6 game hitting streak. Joe Tinker is really struggling with the bat, and Johnny Kling needs to be more consistent if they are going to catch the Giants.

Pirates

Honus Wagner was hitting .197 on July 1. Now he is in the top 5 in hitting and has almost single handedly brought this team into the race from nowhere. That said, Charles Phillippe and Charlie Case have really put the screws to hitters. Fred Clarke has not provided much power, but with a revived Wagner in front of him has really taken advantage of the RBI situations. Ginger Beaumont is having an MVP caliber season as well. They have at times shown some power, but this is a team built more on pitching and speed. I don’t think they can catch the Cubs, let alone the Giants, but they are a very good group.

Phillies

This is a team right where they should be. Not a ton of talent, but not horrible. They gave chase to the Cubs earlier and finally sank down to the level of their talent. The batting has improved with some lineup changes and the return of Hugh Duffy from a long injury, but they just don’t have the firepower of the upper division and it shows when they play them. That said, I expect another mini surge as they are scheduled to play the much weaker lower division and Bill Duggleby and Tully Sparks should really punish these teams.

Braves

This is a team that is pretty awful. Fred Tenney is hitting .271 and Ed Abbaticchio has 37 steals but the list of achievements ends there. The staff is good but not great. Irving Young has been unbelievably good this year, but has not much to show for it. Defensively they are trying to set the record for most errors in a season and at 136 in 82 games they are on pace (unless the Browns do “better”)

Cardinals

This is a team that was not very strong to begin with and now has had some injuries to boot. They really are at a pitching disadvantage against all but the Dodgers and it hurts them a lot. Pepper Clarke hit his first grand slam during the month and Mike Grady and Homer Smoot have brought some hitting lately but while Grady has 4 homers neither is playing up to the card they got and are hitting .250 each.

Reds

A team that in my opinion is playing better than they should be. They do have some decent pitching, but really not a lot of hitting, especially when Jim Seymour and Jimmy Sebring are drastically underperforming. Both are doing ok, and some players with weak cards are actually doing better than they should be. Combined with some terrific pitching lately and they may yet finish in 5th place. Bob Ewing is having a great year, but the defense has really let him down and his numbers don’t accurately reflect this. Fritz Odwell leads all of baseball with 13 homers. Harry Steinfeldt has spent a good part of the season on the DL which has hurt their chances. They are the only bottom division team that actually plays the Giants tough, bringing them to extra innings many times.

Dodgers

Well I will try to put a positive spin on this season, but I keep picturing that pre-season meeting in the movie “Major League” where the front office is looking at the roster and just know where the season is headed already. The most appropriate quote is “Most of these players I never heard of, or are way past their prime” and the new GM adds “Some of these guys never had a prime”. OK, now to find the silver linings. Henry Gessler is hitting .271 with 37 steals and Jimmy Sheckard is hitting .319 with 29 steals and 2 homers. Harry Lumley is hitting .241 and that is where the list of players hitting their weight ends. Of all the teams I have seen so far only the 1901 Giants is worse. Elmer Stricklett has been respectable pitching wise this year, but this team always finds a way to lose. It would take the rest of the league to quit playing for them to not finish last at this point.